Includes bibliographical references and index.

About the editors -- Notes on contributors -- Acknowledgements -- Editors' notes on terminology -- Introduction / Liz Brooker, Mindy Blaise and Susan Edwards -- Part I : theoretical perspectivs on play and learning / Mindy Blaise, Susan Edwards and Liz Brooker -- Foundations of play theory / Doris Bergen -- Play in the non-classical psychology of L.S. Vygotsky / Elena Kravtsova -- Children's play as cultural activity / Suzanne Gaskins -- Make-believe play and self-regulation / Adena B. Meyers and Laura E. Berk -- Cultural-historical perspectives on play : central ideas / Bert van Oers -- Postcolonial and anti-racist approaches to understanding play / Veronica Pacini-Ketchabaw -- New materialisms and play / Hillevi Lenz Taguchi -- Childhood studies and play / Sue Saltmarsh -- Ethical dimensions and perspectives on play / Susan Grieshaber and Felicity McArdle -- Gender discourses and play / Mindy Blaise -- Studying play through new research practices / Liz Jones and Rachel Holmes -- Part II : play and learning in pedagogy, curriculum and assessment / Susan Edwards, Liz Brooker and Mindy Blaise -- The play-pedagogy interface in contemporary debates / Elizabeth Wood -- Developmental play in the classroom / Stuart Reifel -- Children's play and learning and developmental pedagogy / Ingrid Pramling Samuelsson and Niklas Pramling -- Play provisions and pedagogy in curricular approaches / James E. Johnson -- Children's content learning in play provision : competing tensions and future possibilities / Helen Hedges -- Professional preparation for a pedagogy of play / Sharon Ryan and Kaitlin Northey-Berg -- Learning mathematics through play / Amy Noelle Parks -- Play as the precursor for literacy development / Celia Genishi and Anne Haas Dyson -- Understanding narrative as a key aspect of play / Pentti Hakkarainen and Milda Bredikyte -- Physical play and development / Michelle Tannock -- Play and playfulness : issues of assessment / Margaret Carr -- Part III : contexts for play and learning / Liz Brooker, Mindy Blaise and Susan Edwards -- Whose play? Children, play and consumption / Daniel Thomas Cook -- Children's right to play / Stuart Lester and Wendy Russell -- Infant and toddler play / Jennifer Sumsion and Linda J. Harrison -- Children's perspectives on play / Johanna Einarsdottir -- Digital play / Christine Stephen and Lydia Plowman -- Play in peer cultures / Annica Löfdahl -- The impact of race and culture on play in early childhood classrooms / Jennifer Keys Adair and Fabienne Doucet -- Playfulness and the co-construction of identity in the first years / Rod Parker-Rees -- Connecting home and educational play : interventions that support children's learning / Maria Evangelou and Mary Wild -- Opportunities and affordances in outdoor play / Margaret Kernan -- Media, popular culture and play / Jackie Marsh -- Index.

With a wide range of contributions from highly respected researchers, this handbook examines historical, current and future research issues in play and learning scholarship, offering clarity and breadth in this dynamic and changing field.